Former Marine running for Congress claims VA was 'worst it had ever been' under Obama administration

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Marine veteran: VA was 'worst it's ever been' under Obama administration

Minnesota congressional candidate and Marine veteran Tyler Kistner discusses his congressional run and a report alleging that President Trump made disparaged remarks about American troops.

The Department of Veterans Affairs reached a low point during the Obama administration, Minnesota GOP congressional candidate Tyler Kistner, a former Marine, told Fox Business Network Friday.

“President Trump is the one who helped increase the funding for the military, helped give us the capabilities to stand up to China, Russia, and the likes to make sure we have strong national security, and he also helped increase [funding for the] Veteran Affairs to make sure that we're taking care of our veterans after they serve,” Kistner told "Varney & Co.”

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"Under the Obama administration, we weren't getting that," Kistner added. "Our budget was cut, we had limited resources to effectively carry out our job, and Veterans Affairs was the worst it had ever been. So I stand with our president and everything he's continuing to do for our military day in and day out."

Kistner was responding to a report in The Atlantic magazine that Trump disparaged fallen World War I soldiers as "losers" and "suckers" during a 2018 trip to France.

Meanwhile, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo says he has “never heard” President Trump use those terms to refer to members of the military.

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“I’ve been with this president coming on four years. I’ve never heard the president use the language" described in a report in The Atlantic, Pompeo told “Fox & Friends” on Friday. "I’ve never seen that. Indeed, just the contrary."

Kistner is seeking to unseat Democrat Angie Craig in Minnesota's Second Congressional District, which covers an area south of the Twin Cities and is considered to be a battleground district.